Category: Saudi Arabia
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Though Saudi Arabia is today the Gulf’s major regional and economic power, its regime is struggling with internal dynamics which have the potential to seriously threaten continued security and stability. One major factor underpinning the government’s domestic challenges is the sectarian nature of Sunni-Shia relations. Saudi Shia are subject to significant government-sponsored policies of discrimination and repression that are buoyed by the monarchy’s support for ultra-conservative Wahhabism and sectarian concerns. Treated and regarded as second-class citizens, Saudi Shia feel an increasing resentment towards the Saudi Monarchy and state. As Saudi Arabia’s Shia live predominantly in the oil-rich areas of the Eastern Province, this resentment, should it continue to grow, could become a considerable economic and security issue for the Saudi regime. Of particular importance are the attitudes of Saudi Arabia’s Shia youth, who are more politically perceptive and active than earlier generations and who constitute the future of Saudi Sunni-Shia sectarianism. This paper details the nature of Sunni-Shia relations in Saudi Arabia, with a particular emphasis on the perceptions and activities of the Shia youth. Through examination of the government’s history of sectarianism and policies of discrimination, a significant security threat to the Saudi Monarchy is identified and described. The paper furthers analyzes the ramifications of future scenarios of government engagement versus non-engagement in reforms aimed at redressing Shia grievances.

Around 15 percent of Saudi Arabia’s 27 million inhabitants is Shia, making them a distinct minority in the otherwise overwhelmingly Sunni state. They live predominantly in Saudi Arabia’s oil-rich Eastern Province, with the largest concentrations in the area around Qatif and Al-Hasa.[i] There is also a small Shia community in Medina, and about half a million Ismaili Shia and several thousand Zaydi Shia reside in the province of Najran along the border with Yemen.[ii] Saudi Shia are mostly adherents to the Twelver Branch of Shi’ism, drawing concern from the Saudi regime about their loyalty to Iran, which also follows the Twelver school.[iii]

In terms of population and political activity, Saudi Arabia has a considerable youth problem; more than half of the country’s population is under 21 years old. Frustrated with their political and economic marginalization and highly internet-savvy, the youth have found ways to mobilize and protest against the government in ways that undermine the regime’s political suppression.[iv] The Shia youth are no different and, with the added grievances of discrimination and sectarianism, present an even greater challenge to the Saudi state.

Shia dissent is the product of unequal distribution of political capital and economic resources. Though these inequalities affect many of Saudi Arabia’s provinces and a great number of Saudi Sunni, they are particularly felt in the Eastern Province, where most Shia reside. The eastern areas of Saudi Arabia have remained a lesser priority to the regime than the center and west in political power, economic development, and importance in the narratives and character of the state.[v] It is there that the regime’s policies of exclusion and discrimination are most deeply rooted and most heavily pronounced. Widespread unemployment and exclusion from the state’s patronage system is growing, and acutely affects the Shia youth. Infrastructure and services are being strained and the public sector is growing increasingly bloated.[vi] It would be an oversimplification to frame Saudi Shia dissent as purely a sectarian matter: economic hardship and political marginalization are largely the motivating factors behind Shia protests against the regime. However, discrimination and repression based on sectarian lines abets and amplifies the resentment Saudi Shia feel and further exacerbates their feelings of marginalization.[vii]

Easterners lack the ability to provide input into municipal budgets and to influence the administration of the province, creating significant political frustration. While this also affects eastern Sunni, other policies of discrimination are further imposed on the Shia. They are barred from senior positions in the government and central government agencies, such as the Ministry of Interior, the diplomatic corps, the National Guard, and the Ministry of Defense.[viii] At present there is no single Shia cabinet member or deputy minister.[ix] While at the local level Shia are better represented in the municipal councils, real power in the province lies instead at the governorate level, which is firmly controlled by the royal family.[x]

Shia grievances extend beyond the political sphere and into daily-life confrontations. Police forces in the Eastern Province are usually staffed by Sunnis from other parts of country, creating tension between local Shia communities and law enforcement officers. Shia are often subject to arbitrary arrests, searches, and seizures.[xi] Saudi education is framed in an anti-Shia manner, with school textbooks frequently containing derogatory allusions to the Shia and occasionally arguments for socially excluding or even killing them.[xii] Shia also face obstacles towards working in the education system; currently there is no Shia head of a university or girls school professor.[xiii] Shia treatment under the Saudi judicial system, which is governed by the Sunni Hanbali school of jurisprudence, has been source of dissent. Only in limited, Shia-majority areas such as Qatif and al-Hasa has the government allowed Shia courts, and even there the Ministry of Justice often appoints judges without consultation with the local communities.[xiv] The power of these Shia courts is also restricted by Sunni courts, which have veto power over the Shia courts’ rulings.[xv] Meanwhile, Shia in other parts of the country, including areas of the Eastern Province and Shia areas of Medina, have access to only Sunni courts.

Saudi Shia are also subject to religious discrimination, a reflection of the sectarian nature of Shia-Sunni relations in the country. Government-sponsored Salafi clerics are generally united in the view that Shia deviate from Salafi orthodoxy, consequently branding them ‘rejectionists.’ Senior Sunni clerics who have made statements that Shia are heretics and infidels have not been silenced by the regime, indicating at the least an official toleration of such views.[xvi] Though the regime permits them private religious gatherings, Saudi Shia face bureaucratic and legal obstacles when licensing mosques and mourning houses. Shia are not allowed to build mosques or run places of worship in cities with mixed Sunni-Shia populations.[xvii] There are no Shia representatives in the Senior Ulema Council, the country’s highest religious body that issues religious edicts affecting nearly every aspect of political and social life in Saudi Arabia.[xviii]

Underlying this discrimination is the alliance between the ruling family and the Wahhabi/Salafi religious establishment, an alliance that has existed since the beginnings of the Saudi state. The religious establishment is given a prominent place in Saudi Arabia’s political and social discourse, and in return legitimizes and buttresses the royal family’s rule.[xix] For many clerics, their continued access to political power is ensured by promoting sectarianism. Any recognition or support of the Shia identity would effectively undermine Salafi primacy in the country’s religious and social affairs.[xx] In order to manage demands for reforms and prevent any cross-sectarian cooperation among activists, the regime has tried to portray Eastern Province protests as exclusively Shia in character. Sectarianism has proven to be an effective tactic for the regime to dispel popular dissent. The regime has allowed the proliferation of anti-Shia sermons and rhetoric, which serve as a way to placate potential critics in the Salafi establishment and further deflect popular dissent.[xxi]

Sectarianism is also borne out of Saudi geopolitical concerns. Saudi Arabia has been suspicious of potential transnational ties between its Shia and Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria. A particular source of suspicions arises from the Shia institution of the ‘marj taqlid,’ the practice of senior Shia clerics giving transnational spiritual, social, and juridical edicts. There is concern about the extent to which the edicts are directive versus consultative and whether they extend into political matters.[xxii] Ties between Saudi Shia and Iran have been a particular source of inflated regime suspicion. Saudi Arabia and Iran have had tense relations since the 1979 Revolution, and events such as the 1982 and 1987 clashes between Saudi security forces and Iranian pilgrims have further strained their relationship. Iranian Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s condemnations of Saudi Arabia resulted in a Saudi regime wary of Iranian meddling in its domestic affairs. Iranian subversion, the regime reasons, would come about through Saudi Arabia’s Shia population.[xxiii] Saudi Shia acknowledge their longstanding ties with Shia clerics in Iraq and Iran; concurrently, they assert that their religious alliance does not amount to loyalty to foreign governments.[xxiv] Furthermore, while there is historical precedent of Saudi Shia supporting subversive groups with Iranian connections, they now overwhelmingly eschew political ties with Iran and reject its theocratic governance.[xxv]

The Saudi regime has found political capital out of its policies that politically marginalize Shia and Sunni citizens alike. By stifling political freedoms and participation, the regime is able to suppress reform movements that would undermine the status quo. The royal family has supported this political environment through its narrative that the country’s citizens are prone to Islamist and tribal passions and are therefore not ready for democracy or civil society. The monarchy legitimizes itself by arguing that it fulfills the role of a mediator that binds the fractious citizenry together.[xxvi] Of course, activists point out that it is the lack of civil society and participatory government that support the existence of sectarianism and tribalism in Saudi society.[xxvii]

The historical development of sectarianism accounts for the growing involvement of aggressive, activist Shia youth in contemporary protest movements. The prevalent sectarianism that has been a pervasive element in the country’s internal dynamics can be traced to the early time of the Kingdom’s formation. The Emirate of Diriyah, an early Saudi state formed through an alliance between Muhammad Ibn Saud and the ultra-conservative imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, had clashed with the Shia of the Arabian peninsula. In 1913, King Abdulaziz Al Saud, founder of modern Saudi Arabia, seized al-Hasa. Wahhabi clerics ordered the demolition of several Shia mosques and took over preaching duties of remaining mosques in order to convert the population. Al Saud’s radical ‘Ikhwan’ army conducted a vicious anti-Shia rampage, calling on the king to either convert or permit the killing of Shia. Despite the King’s refusal, the army acted unilaterally, and in 1926 massacred large numbers of Shia.[xxviii] In the decades which followed, Saudi Shia continued to be treated as second class citizens, having religious freedoms and civil liberties strongly curtailed through regime policies.

The late 1970s saw increasing dissatisfaction among the Shia at the government’s failure to deliver on promises to improve living conditions in the Eastern Province.[xxix] The Iranian Revolution of 1979 further spurred heightened activism among Shia in the Eastern Province and signaled a shift of power from quietist Shia leaders to revolutionary-minded, younger activists. In November 1979, Shia protesters defied a government ban on Muharram rituals and staged demonstrations, calling on the government to end discrimination. The regime responded with repressive measures, arresting hundreds of activists and killing at least two dozen Shia protesters.[xxx] Meanwhile, leaders of the uprising founded a protest group known as the ‘Organization for the Islamic Revolution,’ who developed close ties with the revolutionary Iranian government. Saudi clerical and lay activists soon became instrumental in supporting this group.[xxxi]

Eventually, Iran became dissatisfied with its inability to control the Organization for the Islamic Revolution, leading it to form a more militant group in Saudi Arabia known as the ‘Hezbollah al-Hejaz.’[xxxii] This group launched a series of terrorist attacks within Saudi, including a 1987 attack at a gas plant and a 1988 bombing of petrochemical installations in the Eastern Province. In response, the Saudi government accused the Shia of sabotage, executing several and placing further restrictions on their civil and economic freedoms.[xxxiii] By the end of the 1980s, a growing number of Saudi Shia activists recognized the limits of revolution. They viewed accommodation with the government as a more realistic approach for achieving reforms. As such, in 1993 a number of Shia leaders of the Organization for the Islamic Revolution made a deal with the Saudi government, promising to abandon violence in exchange for assurances regarding political reform and the redress of grievances.[xxxiv] This marked the beginning of a period of peaceful activism by clerics and activists known now as the ‘Reformists,’ or ‘Islahiyyin.’ Following this reconciliation, Saudi Shia political activity consisted largely of grassroots civil society work, participation in local council elections, dialogue with like-minded reformists, and petitions to the royal family.[xxxv]

King Abdullah’s accession to the throne in 2005 brought Eastern Province Shia the hope that reform could be actualized through the political process. Abdullah sponsored a number of initiatives aimed at reducing sectarian divisions and increasing public involvement in political life and dialogue. Yet these reforms, more cosmetic than tangible, ultimately failed to live up their promises, as power over local budgets, personnel appointments, and administration remained in the hands of the Ministry of Interior instead of local communities. Meanwhile, cross-sectarian dialogue became undone due to rising sectarian tensions in Saudi society and government obstacles to such efforts.[xxxvi]

Conflict broke out in 2009, when clashes erupted between Shia pilgrims visiting the cemetery of Shia imams in Medina and members of the regime’s morality police. Security forces moved into Medina’s Shia neighborhoods, arresting and injuring numbers of residents. The regime’s response to the riots indicated to the Shia in the Eastern Province that the royal family’s outreach efforts had ended. Soon after, the most intense of demonstration of Shia dissent since 1979 occurred as protests erupted in Qatif, al-Safwa, and al-Awamiya.[xxxvii] On March 13th, as the protests in al-Awamiya continued around him, an outspoken Shia cleric named Nimr al-Nimr gave a sermon lambasting the regime and suggesting the East secede. Nimr al-Nimr’s brazen statements and outright rejection of the Islahiyyin’s participatory approach quickly won him support and fame among frustrated young Shia men. The Saudi regime soon arrested al-Nimr and a number of his supporters.[xxxviii] However, far from stifling dissent, al-Nimr’s arrest bolstered his support and further galvanized the Shia youth’s resentment of the regime.

The 2009 protests and al-Nimr’s arrest marked a turning point in Saudi Shia dissent, with a younger, more activist, and more aggressive cohort of Shia activists coming to play prominent roles. Disagreements about protest strategies and methods for reform began to fall along generational lines, with the younger Shia seeing the Islahiyyin as having been co-opted by the regime.[xxxix] For many, outright opposition seemed like the only means to achieve reform.[xl]

This current came to a head in the wake of the 2011 Arab Uprisings. Youthful Sunni and Shia activists, inspired by the crowds of Tahrir Square and Benghazi, planned nationwide demonstrations scheduled for March 11th. In early March youth groups across the country formed a cross-sectarian movement called the ‘Free Youth Coalition,’ which issued a lengthy list of political and economic demands. Yet this effort was thwarted by fundamental disagreements and distrust among coalition members. The Shia wanted to focus more on reforms specific to discrimination in the Eastern Province rather than overarching, national reforms.[xli] The Shia preempted the planned March 11th protest with protests of their own, the first of which occurred on March 3rd and 4th. The regime responded with the arrest of dozens of protesters in Qatif.[xlii] In the face of increased security presence around Riyadh and Jeddah, the March 11th cross-sectarian protest, dubbed the ‘Day of Rage,’ came and went without mass protest.[xliii]

The Saudi regime’s counteroffensive against took several forms – the King announced a package of twenty economic gifts to the people worth an estimated $93 billion.[xliv] A media campaign was launched to discredit the protests, emphasizing their destructive nature and portraying them as serving subversive Shia interests.[xlv] Anti-Shia sentiment was mobilized through Salafi religious scholars who issued fatwas against the protests and warned of an Iranian-Shia conspiracy.

The regime also relied on local supporters among the Shia clergy to dampen the protests. This served to bring the clerics into direct conflict with the frustrated, activist youth and did very little to lessen their protest fervor. [xlvi] Throughout the year, demonstrations continued and were met with security crackdowns. On August 3rd, eight months after the first protests, the popular cleric Tawfiq al-Amir was arrested, sparking further activity. On October 3rd, security forces clashed with armed protests in al-Awamiya, resulting in numbers of wounded police officers and civilians. In November, a 19-year-old was shot and killed at a checkpoint near Qatif, galvanizing the youth to take to the streets en mass. By the end of the protests, five people had been killed and others wounded. In response to the protests, the regime tried to link the opposition and violence to Iranian subversion. Instances of armed assaults by Shia youth on police vehicles, drive-by shootings, street marches, and police raids soon became near-nightly occurrences.[xlvii]

Nimr al-Nimr issued a sermon demanding the end of the monarchy on February 10th, 2012. Protesters made their way through al-Awamiya, shouting demands for the release of prisoners and reforms. In the ensuing chaos, a 21-year-old protester was killed.[xlviii] In late June, Nimr al-Nimr delivered a tirade against the rousing family, praising the death of Saudi crown prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz. Saudi security forces soon after arrested him following a car chase and shootout. His arrest was met with intense and popular anger.[xlix] The summer and fall of 2012 were accordingly marked with sustained protests in the east.[l]

There were encouraging signs that the government was ready to take steps to redress grievances in early 2013. Some television networks that spouted anti-Shia rhetoric were shut down, an additional Shia member was appointed to the Majlis al-Shura, and the longtime governor of the Eastern Province was removed from his post. Many activists remained pessimistic about real change, and by mid-year government policy was again portraying Shia activism as Iranian subversion.[li] It was during this time that the country’s state prosecutor called for the crucifixion of Nimr al-Nimr.[lii] In August of 2014, protests broke out across the Eastern Province calling for the release of Nimr al-Nimr and other political prisoners.[liii] In turn, the government announced in mid-September that Nimr al-Nimr’s sentencing would be postponed, likely recognizing that a harsh verdict could spark another round of intense unrest and renewed protests.[liv]

On October 15th, Nimr al-Nimr was sentenced to death, having been found guilty of “not obeying King Abdullah, not pledging allegiance to him or the state, incitement of vandalism and sectarian strife, demonizing Saudi rulers, calling for the collapse of the state and insulting relatives and companions of the Prophet Muhammad.”[lv] The verdict has raised fears of renewed protests and dissent.[lvi] If anything, the sentencing will further alienate Shia youth from the government and will inhibit any peaceful movement toward both addressing dissent and reconciling the surmounting issues that feed frustration and discontent. In fact, as recently as October 18th, small-scale protests against the sentence have begun to break out in the east.[lvii]

The history of marginalization provides ample context of Shia dissent in Saudi Arabia. Discrimination, limited reforms, and repression have frustrated Saudi Shia, pushing them to release their resentment through violent protests. The younger generation has grown progressively more impatient and dissatisfied with the older generation’s inability to end discriminatory policies and bring about tangible improvements in living conditions and jobs. The failure of the Islahiyyin’s moderate, pro-dialogue approach for addressing grievances has suggested to the youth that a more aggressive, violent style of dissent is necessary.[lviii] The youth further view many of the Shia clergy and members of the Islahiyyin as being co-opted by the Saudi government, further contributing to a generational divide.[lix]

Youth protest networks across the Eastern Province have grown significantly in recent years, with cellular groups such as the ‘Free Youth Coalition,’ ‘Free Men of Sayhat,’ ‘Supporters of al-Qatif,’ and ‘Eastern Region Revolution’ gaining popular support. Several of these networks merged during the 2012 protests to form the ‘Freedom and Justice Coalition,’ which now plays a leading role in organizing demonstrations across the region.[lx] While these organizations are similar to older networks in their demands for equality and constitutional monarchy, they are more active and aggressive in their protests. As the prominent Islahiyyin leader Hassan al-Saffar noted in a 2012 sermon, “Previous generations tolerated and adapted to problems, the current generation is different.”[lxi] A marked difference and generational divide exists in how Shia resentment is being expressed, readily demonstrated by the violence which has broken out over the last few years, and which is the worst seen since the late 1970s.

These youth networks make skillful use of social media to coordinate street protests and to disseminate criticism of the regime. Through the many different platform of social media, they have launched a renewed effort at dialogue with Sunnis across the country. This represents a departure from dialogue efforts that historically took place in the regime’s officially sanctioned forums, which activists see as a means to circumscribe any true coordination on reform.[lxii] Social media has also contributed to the growing split between Shia youth activists and the older generation; the Shia clergy, who have largely attempted to moderate and minimize protest violence, appear increasingly out of touch.[lxiii] Social media, not the sermon, has become the primary channel of political communication in the east, passing the initiative in planning protests and protest strategies from older activists to the internet-savvy youth. The Saudi government attempts to limit online dissent and protest coordination by blocking websites, monitoring facebook posts, and shutting down blogs which criticize the regime.[lxiv] Yet the nature of the internet is such that the government cannot fully succeed in quelling the online activity. As the 2011 ‘Arab Spring’ and 2014 Hong Kong protests amply demonstrate, internet-savvy protest organizers can find new technologies or websites to use for their purposes, always staying one step ahead of the regime.[lxv]

Significantly, many of these youth organizations have shown a clear deference to and support for the teachings of clerics such as Nimr al-Nimr and Tawfiq al-Amir. Although their rhetoric is unapologetically inflammatory against the Saudi monarchy, they profoundly advocate for Shia dignity and justice. The themes of their sermons and speeches, which call for redressing grievances, strongly resonate among the endemically underemployed and underprivileged youth. Nimr al-Nimr and others have been instrumental in mobilizing activity the streets.[lxvi] It is this connection, between those in need and those who advocate, that presents a distinct challenge for the government. Allowing individuals such as Nimr al-Nimr to deliver scathing critiques of the Saudi government could make the regime appear weak, which in turn could invigorate and energize opposition movements and lead to more demands. However, as history has shown, arresting and silencing these clerics has pushed protests into the streets, with demands for releasing the clerics catapulting into full-fledged demonstrations.[lxvii]

The undertow of sectarianism throughout Saudi Arabia’s Shia population, pulling on its youth, provides the fodder for a crisis in the making for the regime. The government faces a hotbed of simmering dissent in its Eastern Province, dissent that has been brought about by inequitable and discriminatory policies that diminish economic, social, and educational opportunities. The reluctance to address Shia grievances and a fear-driven approach towards ending demonstrations have not only perpetuated Shia dissatisfaction, but have convinced the youth that more aggressive forms of opposition are a viable option. The root causes of protest – numerous long-standing government policies and historic circumstances that have left the Shia feeling oppressed – are systemic and entrenched.

If the Saudi government wishes to effectively deal with its Shia opposition, it should actually address and resolve these issues. Its other approaches to handling the problem have proven ineffective, if not counter-productive. However, ‘cosmetic’ or palliative attempts at reform would be ineffective, exemplified by King Abdullah’s early attempts at dialogue and reform, which were followed years later by the “Day of Rage” and further protests. One set of tangible solutions has been provided by a 125-page document commissioned by the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in 2012 that investigated the protests in the Eastern Province. It objectively identified the roots of eastern dissent as entrenched political, social, and economic problems rather than criminal or Iranian subversion.[lxviii] It suggested a series of reforms which include, among others, ending sectarianism in the media, releasing all political prisoners, reforming the local police station in al-Awamiya, and boosting the development of the east through housing projects, youth sports facilities, and better schools. It further suggested that a commission be established to investigate the Ministry of Interior’s actions in al-Awamiya.[lxix]

Ending sectarian tensions would necessitate shifts in social and media attitudes, education, and local judicial processes. Reforms which would be key steps in these changes include implementing Shia representation in the Senior Ulema Council and Supreme Judicial Council, permitting Shia wider freedoms to worship, and formally recognizing the Shia Ja’fari school of jurisprudence. Resolving underlying economic issues such as unemployment and discrimination for Shia will be a long-term challenge. Changes in Saudi business practices and bureaucratic reforms, such as integrating Shia into local police forces and the Ministry of Interior, would be first steps in that process.[lxx] Empowering local municipal councils and giving broader oversight to community organizations will enable Shia leaders in the east to bolster local infrastructure, diversify the local economy, and improve educational and sports facilities. Doing so is vital to staving off youth-driven opposition and dissent.

To ease and eventually end protest movements and oppositional tensions, the Saudi government should end sweeping laws against “sedition,” censorship, and arbitrary arrests. These standing policies have aggravated youth dissent in the east and have been the cause of other protests across the country. The government should recognize internal dissent as a step towards building a stronger, unified country, rather than portray dissent as evidence of foreign subversion. Not doing so will perpetuate the communication barriers that limit open political dialogue and contribute to further alienation of the younger generation. While much of the youth has little sympathy for Iran, an increasingly gloomy future could push them towards radicalization. With traces of the Iranian-backed militant group ‘Hezbollah al-Hejaz’ still found in the east, the government’s denouncing of activists as foreign agents could become a self-fulfilling prophecy.[lxxi] In reality, reform in the east could be seen as supportive of the regime’s strategic aim of blunting Iranian influence; Saudi Shia would have little desire for a pro-Iranian orientation if they were treated fairly by their government.

Implementing comprehensive reforms to conciliate its Shia minority is easier said than done. Policies of discrimination are in place because of historical circumstances and political arraignments hat have brought the royal family into power and sustain its power. Cultural and religious biases and prejudices, ubiquitous throughout the world, are most difficult to alter. Letting go of the status-quo and becoming vulnerable to the financial, political, and social risk that comes with change is anathema to most leaders. The regime has evidently calculated that it is easier or more beneficial to stave off calls for reform, crush dissent, and continue its current policies than to deal with the social and political ramifications of sweeping reform. Yet while Shia protests and dissent are not currently an imminent threat to the Saudi government, their persistence and increasingly violent nature show that the status quo cannot continue. Ignoring long-standing grievances is only aggravating the very situation the regime would like to diffuse.

Shia youth represent the future of anti-government opposition in Saudi Arabia and should therefore be of enormous concern for the Saudi government. Frustrated and disillusioned with the failed moderate approach of past reformers, the younger generation has proven to be increasingly willing to take to the streets in aggressive, violent protests. The government’s attempts to deal with the opposition through security crackdowns, censorship, and arrests have only intensified resentment and galvanized people to protest. For the endemically underemployed and underprivileged youth, facing police lines and arrest may be preferable to living under present circumstances. Unless they see tangible improvements in their living conditions, this unrest is likely to continue indefinitely. As protests over Nimr al-Nimr’s sentencing continue to break out and deepen the tensions between the Shia and the government, the perceptions, attitudes, and grievances of Saudi Arabia’s Shia youth are a serious crisis in the making. The only long-term solution is substantial and comprehensive reform that counterbalances the inequities of inherent discrimination.

[xxxv] Frederic Wehrey, “The Forgotten Uprising in Eastern Saudi Arabia.” For a broader analysis of the Islahiyyin period, see also: Frederic Wehrey, Sectarian Politics in the Gulf: From the Iraq War to the Arab Uprisings (Columbia University Press, 2013).

[lxv] For an analysis of the use of ‘Twitter’ in the 2011 ‘Arab Spring,’ see: Catherine O’Donnell, “New study quantifies use of social media in Arab Spring,” University of Washington, http://www.washington.edu/news/2011/09/12/new-study-quantifies-use-of-social-media-in-arab-spring/ (accessed October 17, 2014). For an analysis of the use of social media in the 2014 Hong Kong protests, which demonstrates how activists can circumvent online censorship, see also: Emily Parker, “Social Media and the Hong Kong Protests,” The New Yorker, http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/social-media-hong-kong-protests (accessed October 17, 2014).

[lxvii] “The Arrest Of A Shiite Cleric Could Be The Spark That Ignites Saudi Arabia,” Business Insider, http://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-arrest-turmoil-cleric-2011-3 (accessed October 17, 2014).

[lxviii] Frederic Wehrey, “The Forogtten Uprising in Eastern Saudi Arabia.” The full report, “ʿAbd al-Rahman Muhammad ʿAmr al-ʿAqil, “Ahdath al-ʿAwamiya wa al-Qatif,” (The Events of al-Awamiya and al-Qatif), can be found at http://t.co/wltovJtn

The relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia has been a long, important, and impactful one. The two countries have engaged in much trade, military cooperation, intelligence sharing, and other cooperative bilateral relations. The US-Saudi relationship is important for both countries, and both countries bring much to the relationship and get much out of it. That said, the United States seems to get more out of the relationship, a result of the different comparative strengths of the two countries and the different domestic factors affecting them.

The United States should and does care much about Saudi Arabia, because Saudi Arabia is in an incredibly important position to serve American strategic interests. Perhaps the most obvious of these is that the Kingdom is one of the largest oil producing countries in the world. The United States relies heavily upon oil for its economy and military, and fostering a close relationship with Saudi Arabia has therefore allowed it easy and secure access to its most needed resource. Though the United States is beginning diversify its energy production sector and increase the domestic extraction of oil, maintaining that steady supply will still be of great importance for the considerable future. Occupying most the Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia is also strategically positioned in a very important part of the world. It can and has served as a staging point for American involvement in and interaction with the region. Connected to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, it commands control of two of the most important shipping and trading routes in the world. Fostering a close relationship with Saudi Arabia has thus allowed the United States to ensure and maintain the steady flow of shipping through these sea lanes, while also providing the United States with a partner to combat the rampant piracy plaguing these waters. Saudi Arabia is a key hegemon in the Middle East, and because of its power and influence it would be strategically rational for the United States to foster a close relationship with it. Doing so provides the United States with a powerful ally that is able to conduct offshore balancing, furthering American interests in the region, while Saudi Arabia’s relationship with the United States would further increase the Kingdom’s own military strength and regional hegemony. Finally, in this post-September 11th environment, Saudi Arabia has invested considerable energy and resources in fighting extremism and terrorism in both the region and internationally. American cooperation with these efforts can play an important role in preventing further terrorist activity, reducing extremist and fundamentalist attitudes, and eliminating existing terrorist organizations.

As a result of these factors, the United States gets much out of its relationship with Saudi Arabia. Because of Saudi Arabia’s influence and clout in the Middle East, the United States has increased its own influence in the entire region through its strategic partnership and close relationship with the Kingdom. Cooperation with the Saudi intelligence and anti-terrorism agencies has helped the United States fight the “war on terror” and combat extremism throughout the region. Indeed, US-Saudi cooperation in anti-terrorism activities has done much to considerably reduce the amount of international terrorism, as can be seen by the limited amount of terrorist activity targeting the United State’s homeland. Resources vital to the American economy such as oil are easily accessible because of the US-Saudi trade relationship, allowing the American economy and military to continue to effectively operate and grow.

The United States has contributed much to its relationship with Saudi Arabia, serving as an important strategic ally, a key partner in trade, and a major source of financial and business investment. Our contribution to the strategic and military alliance with Saudi Arabia is made clearly evident by a number of things: the United States supplies the Kingdom with large amounts of military equipment, has deployed military advisers to train the Saudi military and security forces, played a pivotal role in preventing Saddam Hussein from attacking the Kingdom during the 1990 crisis in the Gulf, and has, since September 11th, closely interacted with and provided key support to Saudi Arabia in intelligence gathering and counter-terrorism activities. As a trade partner, the United States has done much to contribute to the growth of the Saudi economy. Though much of Saudi’s oil is now shipped to other regions of the world, the United States has long been one of the major purchasers of this resource so vital to continued Saudi prosperity. American investment in Saudi Arabia has also been important in Saudi Arabia’s growth. Since the time of Aramco’s creation and operation in Saudi Arabia, American businesses and businessmen have invested and operated heavily in the Kingdom. This investment has brought much money into the country, allowing the Saudi government to engage in the major construction projects and ambitious development programs that are now taking place all over the country.

Though both countries get much out of their relationship, it seems that the United States benefits more from it than Saudi Arabia. The United States uses its close ties with the Kingdom to advance its interests abroad, using the Kingdom as a staging point for direct intervention in the region, as a tool to combat international terrorism, and as a source of vitally needed resources. While these aspects of the relationship also benefit Saudi Arabia, the gain does indeed seem to disproportionately strengthen the United States. Saudi Arabia has never based troops in the United States to intervene in North American geopolitics, for example, nor has it ever been received money as a major supplier of arms to the American military. The American relationship with Saudi Arabia has not placed dramatic limitations on the other relationships the United States can pursue and what it can do internationally, nor has it created much domestic criticism or backlash in the United States. Meanwhile, the Kingdom is often criticized domestically and by Muslims abroad as being a pawn in America’s imperialist policies and the monarchy a product of American meddling in the region. There is some truth to those criticisms, as the monarchy’s legitimacy is only weakly justified and is largely propped up through American support and assistance. The Kingdom can be seen as a tool used for advancing America’s interests and visions for the Middle East, with the United States influencing Saudi Arabia to act according to its wishes. As a result, its relationship with the United States is much more of a burden to it than the United State’s relationship with Saudi Arabia is a burden to America. That said, the Kingdom does owe much of its success and strength to its relationship with the United States, and that reality cannot be understated. Without American support, investment, and equipment, Saudi Arabia would hardly be the economic, political, and military hegemon it is today. As the Kingdom begins to rapidly develop and modernize, much of the driving force behind that development can be traced back to American influence and assistance.

This can largely be attributed to the nature of the international environment and the comparative strength of Saudi Arabia and the United States. While Saudi Arabia can be considered the key player in its region, the United States is a global hegemon, and therefore obtains more out of the relationship. Its relationship with Saudi Arabia is simply another part of America’s larger global foreign policy, whereas Saudi Arabia’s relationship with the United States is a key factor in its growth and regional hegemony. While Saudi Arabia relies heavily upon the United States for trade, investment, and military support, the United States need not necessarily rely as heavily upon Saudi Arabia for the same. Domestic realities can also be considered attributing factors. As previously mentioned, the Saudi monarchy holds onto a tenuous legitimacy, which is only bolstered by the benefits it receives from its relationship with the United States. The nature of Saudi Arabian politics, then, has allowed the monarchy and the Kingdom to be the target of frequent criticism, and indeed that criticism has often turned into radicalized action such as Al Qaeda’s terrorist activity within Saudi borders. These factors have led to what seems to be an uneven net gain in the relationship which disproportionately benefits the United States with numerous benefits and very few drawbacks while providing the Kingdom with considerable benefits but also significant problems.

Yesterday we had the opportunity to talk to a reporter from the Saudi Gazette, an English-language newspaper highly popular in Saudi Arabia. Our discussion ranged over a number of topics, but focused primarily on the nature, quality, and importance of the media in Saudi Arabia. A country’s media in many ways reveals the character of its society, and our discussion was therefore quite illuminating about where Saudi Arabia currently stands and where it may be going. Having spent the last few days reading Saudi newspapers, our discussion also helped provide me context for what I have been reading.

As with any other part of the world, providing the citizens of Saudi Arabia with a constant and quality flow of information about current events plays a very important role in keeping Saudi society informed and knowledge about the world. The media serves as a conduit of information, helping Saudis understand what is going on in their kingdom and abroad while also helping Saudis convey their own issues and concerns into a greater forum of discussion. This is a key step in any country’s development of a pluralistic, open society, and if the trip to Saudi Arabia has impressed anything on me, its that Saudi society is gradually heading in that direction. However, the Saudi media is still largely in a stage of infancy, having not reached the professionalism and journalistic quality frequently found in the West.

We discussed this fact with the reporter quite extensively, talking about the current state of the Saudi media, its shortcomings, and how it may develop. Much of the media in Saudi Arabia, and especially the written media, is produced either in Arabic or in English. The English-language papers are usually of a higher quality, as the skills needed to write and publish in English entails a college education and thus schooling in journalism. The Arabic-language papers are usually written by reporters without much education or training, and, according to the reporter we talked to, are therefore lacking in professionalism or quality. Articles are often bombastic or biased in their nature, or focus on things without much worth reporting. There have been a number of articles I’ve personally witnessed a fair share of articles warning about magic and sorcery. In many cases, the common author is a correspondent or an average person sending in articles to a paper. Journalism as a career is still in its early infancy here in Saudi Arabia, and very few people make a living as a full-time reporter. In many cases, even with the English-language papers, people with high-level connections or known names are more likely to be published than people holding actual degrees in journalism or who are known as professional reporters.

That said, the industry is quickly growing, and with it a higher standard of quality and professionalism will likely come. As the Kingdom builds more and more universities and as the majors they offer expand away from the sciences and into the humanities such as journalism, the amount of professionally trained writers and reporters is bound to increase. The reporter we talked to expressed much optimism about the growth of the industry, saying that its continued development will likely bring about a more intelligent and knowledgeable society. Of course, while this can be seen in its beginning stages now, the industry actually thriving and many journalists entering the field is a reality that is likely years, if not decades, away.

We touched some on what the Saudi press reports about, and what it is allowed to report about. Censorship is an issue in Saudi Arabia, and all reporters know that there are some subjects which are simply red lines not to be crossed. Any article reporting on these issues will likely not be published, for it is worried that putting these issues into a forum of discussion will undermine societal integrity and stability. Still, the reporter said, the Saudi press has been given considerably more leeway in what it is allowed to discuss and report on in the last decade or so, and now openly reporting on issues such as spousal or child abuse, women driving, and the troublesome state of Saudi infrastructure is the norm. In this way, the Saudi press serves as a sounding-board for the Saudi people, allowing them to read and talk about issues in a way that the absence of civil society had prevented them from doing so before. Perhaps, if Saudi society does indeed become more open and willing to tolerate discussion of issues, the media will play a more important role in facilitating that discussion.

We also discussed the overall character of the Saudi media. According to the reporter, Saudis often don’t get their news from the television, unlike Americans, but rather most frequently from the newspaper. It is because of this that newspapers and the written press play such an important role in providing Saudis with information and with facilitating a discussion of issues. However, as is the case in the United States, there is a growing media presence online, and there is an increasing trend for the press to publish their articles and stories online as well as in print. The Saudis are per capita the most connected people online, using Facebook and other forms of social media the most of any society, and this has only helped facilitate this push to put the news online. That said, Saudis are apparently not willing to pay for online subscriptions to news, preferring to find free sources instead. Because of this, the printed paper will likely remain an important source of the news longer than it will here in the United States, where it is gradually disappearing.

Our talk with the reporter was really interested, and provided us with insights into the current state of the Saudi press. The media is an important part of any society, and that is obviously the case here. Though the media also reflects the limitations and constraints of Saudi society, its gradual evolution parallels the evolution of this society. I hope to continue to read the Saudi newspapers and bring some home with me, so that others can see their frequent and their equally frequent failures.